Predestiny? or Free Will?

Predestiny? or Free Will?

Here’s a question that’s been bouncing around inside my mind for the last couple of weeks, today I finally got my answer. One of my youth leaders asked me this question as an introduction to the leaders’ level of discussion. My first instinctive response was free will, because I believed that God entitled me to my own choices, my own decisions and also the capability of making mistakes, not because I’m human – that excuse died when I gave my life to Christ and accepted Christ as my Lord and Saviour, but because I’m a Christian, born into sin and making choices every second of everyday, ‘am I going to think about God, or someone/something else?’, ‘am I going to love God, or something/someone else more?’, ‘am I doing this to please God, or to please myself?’, my next words, my next thoughts, my next feelings – are they going to glorify and reflect God? Or something else? Along with free will also comes consequence, what I have to live with as a result of my choices/actions.

I began to do some research. I asked many well-knowledged friends (people whom I consider smarter than I) and checked out internet blogs, forums and articles that distinguished knowledgeable/wise people with a status of a scholastic accreditation, with an exclusive right to state/share their opinion and have it accepted as truth. After reading several and getting to know different ideas, thoughts and opinions regarding this topic coming from different people with different level’s of statuses, I realized that every single one of these posts were basically outbursts of knowledge that these people had gathered from other sources. And I realized that what I was doing is a mistake that is made by many pastors, ministers, leaders and just generally people with influence, there’s just so many people gathering information and opinions from the internet, books, other people and the Bible; all trying to find answers to mind boggling questions that are consuming their life.

I stepped back for a minute, had a really good look and think about what I was doing, what my friends were doing when I asked them about this question and what others claimed to have done in search for answers. So I took a look at my own life, my past, all my actions, my choices, all the good things I’ve done and all of the countless mistakes I’ve made, everything has been by own doing. My own understanding. My own free will. My actions may have been influenced by God, by friends/family, by experiences, by things I’ve been taught/advice, by caution, by sin and my fleshful lust for it. No one (God included) has ever ‘twisted my arm’, compelled me to make decisions, my life as proof – I believe in God’s graceful gift of free will, but also in predestine, to an extent…

God gave us free will. He gave Adam and Eve free will; He even gave Jesus free will. None of us have to choose to ask for forgiveness, and there isn’t anyone who is beyond redemption. If anyone is predestined, then forgiveness for the Lost goes out the window, because then not everyone can be forgiven, which contradicts the purpose of Jesus being crucified. It means that the only ones that can be forgiven are the ones that God picked out from among us a long time ago; for that matter why preach? Why have missionaries? Or why support them? I believe that that idea turns God into a sick power-hungry tyrant who only uses human beings as a form of entertainment. And I can tell you right now that that is NOT what my Heavenly Father is.
We are ALL God’s children, and we are ALL eligible for forgiveness and redemption.
I don’t believe that God would choose some and exclude others, because at the end of the day, none of us are worthy.

In regards to predestination I do believe, however that God knows who is and who is not going to be saved. And the reason is because God created time, therefore he is not bound to it. God can step out of time and see into our future (as well as our past), and He has, and he knows what we’re going to do, but that doesn’t mean that He makes us choose to do it.



Then I did some more research… according to the Bible, and I’ll let you decide…

“Pastor charged with raping a girl”, “Tourist Drowns on Great Barrier Reef”, “Husband Charged with Wife’s murder”, “Airplane pilot dies at control”, “Scuba Diver killed by shark” all tragic stories, all happened today. Tragedy that brings shame to the human race, and questions ‘control’. Questions God’s ‘existence’.

There is a verses in the book of Romans chapter 8 (in the Bible) that have come to be known as the most indirectly quoted scripture of the Bible it explains God’s existence, our predestination, God’s promise, God’s purpose and how he goes on about fulfilling his promise in our lives.

Romans 8:28, “in all things God works for the good of those who love him.”

There’s a lot of people, a lot of influential people who paraphrase this verse to mean ‘everything will work out in the end’ and that’s wrong, these headlines are proof, take a look at your life right now, take a look at the lives of the people around you, what about the girl who was raped? Is that good? Or the tourist who drowned? Is that good? The pilot who died? Is that good? The diver killed by a shark, is that good? What about the total of all these things, is that a good result? Some things just appear good, like ‘at least you only got run over by a car - not a truck’That’s not what the scripture implies.

First of all, we need to acknowledge God’s supreme PROMISE

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28

It says that “in all things God works for the good” — not that all things are good, but that God uses them to work together for good. In fact, God is at work in all things, whether they are good or evil, to bring about His good purpose in our lives. God is at work in our lives. God is not causing, but using these events to shape our lives for His purpose as we turn to Him in the midst of them.

People who do not know Jesus Christ, who do not know God, who have not entered into a personal relationship with Him, are in a downward spiral of despair. They have no hope. They have no one to turn to. Life seems futile at times, simply not worth living. Especially, if all they see themselves as is a pawn in some great chess game that they don’t even understand? They don’t understand why things are happening to them. They don’t understand what is going on. They feel helpless.

Christians, however, do not have to despair, because there is hope. We are not helpless. We have someone on whom we can unload our problems. We have someone who cares for us. God is there. God is at work to bring about His purpose in our lives. The hope for us is not that we will escape all evil. The hope for us is that we have a God who is able, even in the midst of the most challenging circumstances we encounter, to show us the way through, to help us to live victoriously and to mature us and to bring us to a place of ministry.

The condition is, firstly, that we love God. I am thankful that the condition is not that we have to attain a certain intellectual status or a certain theological understanding or a certain level of holiness and perfection in our lives.I am very imperfect. And so are you. We are all imperfect. I thank God that the condition is not a certain level of sinless ness in our lives, for we would all fail. We must simply love God.

That is what I am trying to develop among believers — people who love Jesus Christ with all their hearts; not people who are right and know that they are right. Vance Havner once said, “You can be straight as a gun-barrel theologically and as empty as a gun-barrel spiritually.” What I am after is not simply theological intellect, though it is important. What I am after are people who love the Lord Jesus with all their hearts.Because if you love God passionately, then God can work in your life. If you love God more than you love your life, if you love God more than you love your possessions, if you love God more than you love any other thing, then when God speaks to your heart, you will obey.That is precisely where God wants us. If we love God with all of our hearts, then in the midst of the difficult situation we will turn to Him, and He will lead us through that situation. That is His ultimate promise to us.

In the second part of verse 28 it says that we have been “called according to His purpose.” What is that eternal PURPOSE He is working out?

“For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” – Romans 8:29

God has a plan and a purpose for our lives, there is a ministry for every one of us. God has called His Church into existence. You are a valuable part of it.
Not only does God have an individual plan for each of us, He has an ultimate plan which is the same for all of us. God's calling for every Christian is that they would become conformed to the likeness of Jesus Christ.

"And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified." – Romans 8:30

There is a providential PROCESS that He is taking us through as believers. Five undeniable affirmations are made in these verses

The first is that God foreknew us. This does not have so much to do with predestination as it has to do with God knowing about our existence in the universe, and knowing us individually by name. Before the foundation of this world, God knew that you were to be. Before time began, God had you in His heart.

God predestined us. To become conformed to the likeness of His Son, that our natures might be changed, and that we might become spiritual men and women.

And then God called us. To commit your lives to Jesus Christ

God justified us. We are now free from the guilt of sin, the penalty of sin, and even the power of sin in our lives, through the great work of Christ, His death and Resurrection.

God glorified us. He speaks of it as a past occurrence, when, in fact, it is yet to be. That is exciting to me because I know if God sees it already done, He is going to be faithful to make sure it happens in my life.

What this passage means is that if we are struggling in the hard times, God knows our struggle and He is working in those hard times to bring us to maturity in Christ. All we need to do is yield to His working, trust in His sovereign hand, and He will see to it that we are brought into that perfect plan He has for us.

You haven't caught God by surprise in any of your circumstances in life. God knows where you are, and He knows what you need. You might be surprised by just how precisely you are where He wants you to be in this process of becoming like Christ. Yield to Him. Trust in His sovereign hand. Trust that He, who created all that we see, knows how to deal with your life. Let Him do it. He is in charge. Who better?

No matter what the news say, no matter what the circumstances are, He is in charge. God is at His best when things are at their worst. You can trust in Him.





I’ve answered the question twice, once by my own understanding, and a second time according to the Bible. I’m sure that there are many other views that I have not mentioned but feel free to let me know if you can think of something else. Feel free to do your own information regarding this topic, don’t just take my word for it. Seek God’s help in understanding life’s questions.

Hope this has been mind boggling and beneficial to you.
God Bless.

[Rant by Deivi]